Fur

I set aside a half dozen red fox and a half dozen smaller beaver to tan over the next while.
I set up like a small assembly line.This fox was finished yesterday.Once things get rolling one pelt will be finished,another will come out of the tan,another will go from the pickle to the tan,another will go into the pickle and another will be rehydrated/salted.I check the pickle and the tan to keep the ph correct and adjust as necessary.
Like a mini assembly line.
I find this better than having a big batch all at once.Each pelt can get the proper attention to have a top quality finished product.

So you go: rehydrate/salted to pickle to tan correct?

Beautiful product. I wish I knew how to do that

Looks like nice work. Next step is selling them as is or a sewing project?

Both,I will sell some to my customers who sew with fur.
My fox hats sell out as fast as I can make them.
I sell more foxes as hats or hoodie trim.Fur sewers buy large beaver that I send to the tannery.The smaller beaver that I tan I use to make hats.I keep some of the larger beaver from the tannery to make mitts.
If I decide to take the time and feel like it I may grade out some lynx I have on hand and tan a few myself this year.I will likely tan some otters at home too,although they are a bit more work.But they tan up very nice.

Very nice! As always!

I only salt the pelts that have not been stretched and dried.In my case that would be some of my small beaver and some otter.After a couple days of salting they will get a good scraping and then degreasing wash,rinse and into the pickle.
Pelts that are dried(all my foxes and some beaver and some otter,and all weasels squirrels ) go into room temp water to re hydrate then directly into degreasing wash,rinse then into pickle.

I stretch and dry all fur that needs to be graded out,like large beaver so I can sort out the ones that will go to the raw fur market and which ones will be sent to the tannery.

Nice fur, Boco.

I hope your fur projects make you a decent return on your labor. Kudos!

Foxey looking fox

BP,Its just another way to move fur. I build tanned fur inventory when raw fur prices of certain articles are down.
It helps to build the inventory of tanned fur so I wont run out when raw fur prices are higher and most of my fur goes to auction.
By building an inventory of tanned fur when the raw fur market is selective also allows me to sell tanned fur products at stable prices(I dont have to raise the price of product by pulling out more valuable fur to tan when the raw fur market is high) which gives me an edge over competitors.
I have been doing this for about 30 years.

That is a lot of work. I have been tanning for maybe 8 or 9 years and it sounds like you do more in one year than I have done. I get too involved in other things to mass produce like you do. Nice looking work......jk

The way I do it it does not seem like much work at all.
Tanning a single dried pelt of a medium sized animal like a smaller beaver or a fox is no more work than skinning stretching and drying one.
Only difference is the steps are spread out over 2 or three days-5 minutes here and 5 minutes there with a lot of dead time while the pelts are in the reydrate, pickle, or tan.
There is considerable more work when doing larger animals,because of the logistics like handling big wet thickly furred hides.
I do not tan hundreds of skins at home-20 to 30 maybe not counting the squirrels and weasels.

nice nice fur boco

Boco - is that a red fox that you trapped? I like the color, bright but not too bright. The white on the hips is cool.

Really nice looking.

Yes Wissmiss one of about 10 I snared last winter.A young of year fox.
It is a bit on the paler side compared to the norm.

How do you break the leather after the tanning process is complete? That process is why I stopped tanning my own. I couldn't replicate the soft leather feel that I get from a tannery, and it was hard work to get to the state where I gave up.

Great job. Sounds like some good strategy.

Boco. great job. what do you tan fur? in the beginning 90. I made 2000 skins per season.

That looks great.

You got a picture of one of those hats handy?


Nice fur.

I do love your fur posts, you have definitely perfected your art. Very, very nice.

52 carl,on smaller prime skins there is very little if any breaking to do.On larger skins of beaver and otter the leather has to be thinned during the tanning process.I break these skins by using a padded beam and a rounded two handled breaking knife,or a one handed bone scraper on a pad on a table.
On smaller prime skins with thinner leather,if you have completely re hydrated the hide,and pickled it so the tan fully penetrates the skin,and have fully stuffed the leather fibres with oil,the skin will not dry stiff. A bit of stretching by hand is all that is needed to soften the skin.Tumbling to clean and polish the fur as well as sanding off the bloom on the leather with a bit of corn starch will leave a fox skin buttery soft.

KOSOI,i use a citric acid pickle,and a commercial garment tanning product to tan skins for garment use.
I tan some skins with aluminum sulfate complexed to tan with washing soda(sodium carbonate).

Heres one made with a pale cross fox.

Very nice hat. I like how you stand the ears up.

You have to remove ear cartilage and leave the front ear skin intact to get that look.Ripping off the front of the ear with the cartilage ruins a skin for this style of hat.
Also the leg skins are used.


Thanks TC1.I got a Med beaver coming out next.

Fox looks great

Very well done!

You the Man Boco ….nice fur ! Wish I could do that…probably could …but my other hobbies would suffah…lol

You do very nice work, Boco!

Mini assembly line sounds good. Not too much work per day but nice productivity. Always enjoy your fur handling posts. Keep em coming. Thanks

Sweet !!

Very nice Boco looks great